Trolley-pole controller.



No. 782,195. PATENTED FEB. 7, 1905.

1 O. V. GREENAMYER.

TROLLBY POLE CONTROLLER.

APPLIOATION FILED r1113. 4, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 782,195. PATENTED FEB. '7, 1905. G. V. GREENAMYER.

TROLLEY POLE CONTROLLER.

APPLICATION FILE-D FEB. 4. 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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No. 782,195. I Patented February '7, 1905.

NITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

CLAREN .E V. GREENAMYER, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO \YILLIAM HYMAN I-IOLABIRD, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

TROLLEY-POLE CONTROLLER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 782,195, dated February '7, 1905.

Application filed February 4, 1903. Serial No. 14:1,883.

(17/ YNWIII/ if 'Y/ air from the reservoir to the interior of the Be it known that l, CLARENCE V. GREENA- front portion of the air-cylinder between pis- 5 )trnn, a citizen of the United States, residing ton l4 and the front of the cylinder. This at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles piston, which will be called the air-piston,

and State of California, have invented new is provided with a stem 15, preferably holand useful Improvements in Trolley -Pole low, which is secured to a connecting-head 16. Controllers for Electric (Jars, of which the This head is pivotally united to the trolleyfollowing is a specification. pole base-socket 17, in which is secured trol- My invention relates to means for controlley'pole 18. This base-socket is preferably 10 ling by air-pressure the trolley-pole to give L-shapcd and is pivotally secured to the basethe wheel the necessary pressure on the trolswivel. Surrounding the stem of the air-pisley-wire and when the wheel accidentally ton within the air-cylinder is a spring 19, leaves the wire to bring the free end of the whose expansive force balances the weight of pole down below the level of the span-wires the trolley-pole and raises it to the wire. If

5 until released, when the wheel may be redesired, the weight of the trolley-pole may placed on the wire; and the object thereof is be balanced, and it may be held to the wire to provide eflicientmeans to accomplish these by an exterior sprin 20, (shown in Fig. 1,) 5 results. I accomplish these objects by the which engages an arm 21, atlixed to the trolmechanism described herein, and illustrated ley-pole socket. Secured to the air-cylinder 20 in the accompanying drawings, in which is the liquid-cylimler 22, to the top of which Figure 1 is a side view of a car equipped is secured liquid-reservoir 23, which is in with my improved controller. Fig. 2 is a plan communication with the cylinder through of so much of my controller as is placed upon passage 24:, which passage is controlled by the top of the car. Fig. 3 is a central longicheck-valve 25, held normally open by spring 5 tudinal vertical section of the parts shown in 26, the tension of which is regulated by screw Fig. "2, a portion of some of the front parts 27, passing in threaded contact through the being shown in elevation. Figs. 4c, 6, and top of the reservoir. The liquid-cylinder is T are views showing details of the construcprovided with a piston 28, having stem 29. tion of some of the parts. which is secured to head 16. The liquid-cyh 3 In the drawings, 1 represents the car. 2 is inder is provided with a short sliding piston an air-brake reservoirattached to the bottom 30, having a stem 31. (Shown enlarged in thereof, which furnishesair by means of which Fig. 1.) This piston has a limited movement the brakes (not shown) are operated in the just in the rear of passage 24:. In the rear of well-known manner, which reservoir supplies this piston the bore of the chamber is slightly 35 air to the trolley-pole controller. A pipe 3 enlarged, and a tubular casing 32 is screwed connects this reservoir with swivel-pin 4, therein. In the rear of the junction of this which unites spindle-base or roof-plate 5, secasing with the casing of the liquid-cylinder 5 cured to the roof of the car, with the baseis an annular chamber 33, which is in comswivel 6. This base-swivel is provided with munieation through channel 3% with pipe 35,

4 arms '7 and 8, in which is pivotally mounted which pipe leads to and connects with trunair-cylinder 9 by trunnions 10 and 11, senion 11. cured to the sides of said cylinder and pass- Casing 32 is provided with a number of pas- 9 ing through holes in the ends of said arms. sages 36, which provide communication be- One of said trunnions 11 is hollow and is contween chamber 33 and the interior of the eas- 45 nected by pipe 12 with the swivel-pin, which ing. In this casing is a cup-shaped checkpipe is rotatable therein. This pin has a valve 37, having a number of notches 38 in channel 13 extending therethrough, which, the rear end thereof and a number of grooves with pipes 3 and 12, afford a passage for the 39 in sides thereof to permit the air entering chamber 33 to have access to the interior and rear face of this valve. This valve normally keeps the opening through the tubular casing closed to prevent the air from passing therethrough into passage 40, which passage is connected by pipe 41 with the rear portion of the air-cylinder back of piston 14. The rear closure of this air-cylinder is provided with relief-valve 42, which is an inwardly-opening spring-pressed check-valve and is shown in detail in Fig. 5, in which a is the valve-stopper, provided with stem 5, having a groove 0 in one side thereof for the passage of air to the chamber (Z, having port 6 in the casing thereof. The valve-stopper is normally held off seat f by spring g, whose tension is regulated by screw it, a pin z' limiting the movement of the stem.

A rope 43 is attached to the trolley-pole for guiding the trolley-wheel to the wire in the usual manner.

A cut-off cock 44 is placed on pipe 3 at the end of the car to cut off the air from the controller, and a petcock 45 is provided above cock 44 to bleed the air from the controller.

.In the operation of my device after the trolley-wheel is placed on the wire, cook 44 is opened and air from the reservoir enters the air-cylinder in front of piston 14, thereby placing an air-pressure on the front face of the piston exerted in the same direction as the pressure of spring 19 to hold the trolley-w heel 46 in contact with the trolley-wire 47. It will be observed that by this construction the trolley-wheel is held in contact with the wire by pneumatic pressure, which is quicker acting than spring-pressure andwithout the vibration of spring-pressure, and that therefore the wheel is less likely to leave the wire and also prevents arcing by the solidity of its contact. The liquid-cylinder is filled with liquid between the pistons, and with the ordinary movement of the trolley-wheel on the wire as it adjusts itself to the varying height of the wire the liquid flows into and out of the liquid-reservoir through passage 24; but on the sudden movement of the liquid caused by the wheel accidentally leaving the wire the check-valve in this passage is closed and the full force of the movement of the liquid is exerted to move piston 30 to unseat valve 37. It will also be observed that the flow of air into and out of the air-cylinder in the rear of piston 14 is likewise provided for by relief-valve 42 when the trolley-wheel is on the wire and that this valve is closed when the full air-pressu re from the air-reservoir is admitted into the air-cylinder in the rear of piston 14. Now if the trolley-wheel accidentally leaves the wire the combined spring and air pressure is exerted to send the trolley-wheel up into the air; but as the air-piston is connected to head 16 it must throw the upper arm of this head backward and downward. This arm carries liquidpiston 28, and the full force of the air and spring pressure is thereby imparted to the liquid in the liquid-cylinder, which causes it to move slide-valve 30 the full limit of its rearward movement and at the same time closes check-valve 25. This movement of piston 30 drives valve 37 off its seat and permits air from chamber 33 to fill the air-cylinder in the rear of piston 14 and close relief-valve 42. As the rear face of the piston has a much larger area than the other face of the piston sub jected to air-pressure, the combined air and spring pressure is quickly overborne and the trolley-wheel is caused to descend below the span-wires and all danger of their contacting with them is avoided. The downward movement of the front end of the air-cylinder through connecting mechanism causes the liquid-piston to move toward the front end of the cylinder, which brings slide-valve 30 back to its normal position. 1

To enable the replacement of the trolleywheel upon the wire, cut-off cock 44 is closed and petcock 45 is opened, when the compressed air in the air-cylinder in the rear of piston 14 is permitted to escape. As soon as the pressure on the rear face of the piston is relieved the pole rises, and the trolley-wheel is guided to its position upon the wire by means of rope 43 in the usual manner. The petcock is then closed and the cut-off cock opened, and the car is ready to proceed.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an electric railway having an overhead feed-wire, and supporting span-wires, a trolley-controller actuated by fluid-pressure whereby to maintain the required trolley contact on the wire, and to lower the trolley automatically to a predetermined point below the span-wires when it accidentally leaves the trolley-wire.

2. The combination with a trolley-pole, of a controller comprising two cylinders, pistons pivotally connected with the pole and adapted to slide in these cylinders, and a valve in position to be unseated by a sudden impulse of one of the pistons whereby to cause a fluid-pressure to be exerted on the other piston in a direction to reverse the movement of the pistons and with them the pole.

3. In a trolley-pole controller the combination of a compressed-air reservoir with an air-cylinder having a piston operatively connected with the trolley-pole, said cylinder being in communication with said reservoir on both sides of the piston, the communication on oneside of the piston being closed and the communication on the other side of said piston being open when the trolley-wheel is in contact with the trolley-wire and having the piston area on said normally open side subjeet to air-pressure of less area than on the IIO other side: and means to open comniunicawith said air-cylinder in the rear of said pisi ton: and means to keep said last-named channel closed when thetrolley-wheel is contacting with the trolley-wire and to open the same when the trolley-wheel leaves the wire.

In a trolley-pole controller the combination of a compressed-air reservoir; a support pivetally connected to the top of the car, an air-cylinder pivotally connected to the support: a piston in said air-cylinder; a channel connecting said air-cylinder with said reservoir on the front side of said piston; atrolleypole pivotally connected to the air-cylinder support; a stem connected to the front side of said piston having a liOtlClblOCli pivotally connected to the base of said trolley-pole; a channel communicating with said first channel and connecting with said air-cylinder in the rear of said piston; and means to control said channel. comprising a check-valve in said channel;

and means to move said check-valve, con'iprising a chamber; a piston having a stem head-block of said lirst piston; liquid in said last chamber intermediate the pistons therein; and a liquid-reservoir communicating with said chamber in froiitot' the piston in the rear end thereof.

t. in a trolley-pole controller the combination ota trolley-pole; a compressed-air reservoir: an air-cylinder having a piston operatively connected to the trolley-pole; a chanv nel connecting said reservoir with said aircylinder on both sides of the piston therein;

a checlcvalve in the channel connecting the rear portion of said cylinder with said reserz voir adapted to close said channel when the trolley-wheel is on the trolley-wire; and means to open said check-valve when the trolleywhecl accidentally leaves the wire, compris- &

ing a liquid-operated piston having a stem adapted to contact with and unseat said valve at said time.

7. In a pneumatic trolley'pole controller the combination of an air-operated piston operatively connected to the trolley-pole and a liquid-cylinder having two pistons therein with liquid therebetween. one of which is operatively connected with the piston of the aircylinder, said pistons being adapted to open the valve closing the air-passage into the aircylinder at the rear of the piston therein when the trolley-wheel accidentally leaves the wire.

8. In a pneumatic trolley-pole controller in which compressed air is used on both sides of the piston ot' the pneumatic cylinder, a checkvalve in the passage leading to said cylinder in the rear of the piston therein adapted to keep said passage closed when the trolleywheel is on the wire.

9. In a pneumatic trolley-pole controller in which compressed air is used on both sides of the piston of the pneumatic cylinder which controls the trolley-pole, and a check-valve is used to keep the passage to the rear of the piston closed when the trolley-wheel is on the wire, means to unseat said valve when the trolley accidentally leaves the wire comprising a hydraulic cylinder; a piston having a stem adapted to contact with and unseat said valve on the rearward movement thereof in the rear portion of said cylinder; a piston operatively connected with the trolley-pole in the front portion of said cylinder, liquid between said pistons, and a reservoir connected with the space between said pistons substantially as described herein.

10. In a trolley-catcher a trolley-pole, means for pressing the trolley-pole upwardly and downwardly, and mechanism for controlling said means.

ll. In a trolley-catcher,a trolley-pole, pneumatic means for pressing the trolley-pole upwardly and downwardly and mechanism for controlling said means.

12. ln a trollev-catclier,a trolley-pole, pneumatic means for pressing the trolley-pole upwardly and downwardly, a spring for assisting said means, and mechanism for controlling said means.

In witness that I claim the foregoing l have hereunto subscribed my name this 29th day of January, 1903.

CLARENCE V. GREENAMYER.

lVitnesses:

G. E. Haiiriian, M. (J. NICKl-ILESON. 

